This is the kind of story that mainstream analysts in the West leave their hearers totally unequipped to understand. The line on Sharia in the West is that it is completely benign, and anyway, impossible to characterize: “Reza Aslan recalled a saying that likened the Sharia to water, since “it takes the form of any vessel it is poured into.”
It is amazing that the whole audience doesn’t erupt into laughter when that infamous clown Aslan emits these howlers. But the mainstream media is instead in endless Emperor’s New Clothes mode, since he parrots all the Right Opinions. Sharia in reality is marked by a remarkable uniformity: the four Sunni madhahib agree on about 75% of all rulings. Whenever and wherever we see Sharia implemented, it looks essentially the same. Changes and variations come in when Sharia provisions are relaxed or dropped altogether, as in secular Turkey — but that is not some different version of Sharia, it is no Sharia at all.
Mali Islamic supremacists move to ban music, just as they have in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Mali and Afghanistan are separated by immense distance and differences of language and culture. But Sharia in both is markedly similar.
Hadith Qudsi 19:5: “The Prophet said that Allah commanded him to destroy all the musical instruments, idols, crosses and all the trappings of ignorance.” (The Hadith Qudsi, or holy Hadith, are those in which Muhammad transmits the words of Allah, although those words are not in the Qur’an.)
Muhammad also said:
(1) “Allah Mighty and Majestic sent me as a guidance and mercy to believers and commanded me to do away with musical instruments, flutes, strings, crucifixes, and the affair of the pre-Islamic period of ignorance.”
(2) “On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will pour molten lead into the ears of whoever sits listening to a songstress.”
(3) “Song makes hypocrisy grow in the heart as water does herbage.”
(4) “This community will experience the swallowing up of some people by the earth, metamorphosis of some into animals, and being rained upon with stones.” Someone asked, “When will this be, O Messenger of Allah?” and he said, “When songstresses and musical instruments appear and wine is held to be lawful.”
(5) “There will be peoples of my Community who will hold fornication, silk, wine, and musical instruments to be lawful ….” — ‘Umdat al-Salik r40.0
Anyway, this action in Syria means that playing music while smoking is right out. “Syria jihadists impose Taliban-style music, smoking ban,” from AFP, January 20 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):
BEIRUT – The jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham has banned music and smoking in Syria’s Raqqa, days after taking control of the northern city following battles with rebel groups.
ISIS said it had decided to “ban the sale of music CDs, music players, and playing songs in cars and buses and in shops and all places,” in a statement posted on jihadist websites and signed the “Wali [governor] of Raqqa.”
The group added they had taken the step because musical instruments and singing are “proscribed in Islam because they distract from remembering God and the Koran.”
In a second statement, ISIS said that as part of efforts to “apply sharia [Islamic] law… it is completely forbidden to sell cigarettes or water pipes in any place.”
Such bans are reminiscent of those the Taliban imposed on television, cinema and music in Afghanistan when in power up until 2001.
ISIS has alienated activists and other opposition fighters in Syria, who accuse it of imposing a reign of terror on areas where it operates.
Its actions provoked a backlash from powerful rebel groups in early January, and the group is now fighting opposition forces in several parts of northern Syria.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday that ISIS fighters “withdrew after midnight yesterday [Sunday] from the western Aleppo countryside and evacuated their positions.”
The Britain-based Observatory also reported heavy clashes between jihadists and rebels on the outskirts of the town of Azaz in Aleppo province, near the border with Turkey….

Blangwort says
Sucks to be them, doesn’t it?
I think the US should drop a whole bunch of solar powered radios and MP3 players with ear buds, preloaded with top forty music from that region. AQ will never win out with that. We’ll call them Obama ‘Pods.
Buraq says
Only a website of real quality could hold up the bizarre nature of Islam for public ridicule, while posting photos of jazzers from ‘the birth of cool.’
Clowns of the Islamic ilk would never appreciate such style. It would be like throwing pearls before swine.
Love the new format, by the way!
Rob says
I’d rather fight than switch.
Saleem Smith says
Islamic Theology Applied: Music forbidden, slavery and sex slavery permitted.
We ex-Muslims know that Islam is a fraud.
THE QURANIC SANCTION OF SLAVERY
The institution of slavery in Islam was formalized in the following Quranic verse, in which Allah distinguishes free human beings or masters, who exercise justice and righteousness, from the dumb, useless and burdensome ones, the slaves:
Quran 16:76
Allah sets forth (another) Parable of two men: one of them dumb, with no power of any sort; a wearisome burden is he to his master; whichever way he directs him, he brings no good: is such a man equal with one who commands Justice, and is on a Straight Way?
Allah warns the believers against taking the slaves as equal partner in status and in sharing their wealth, lest they have to fear them as anyone else:
Quran 30:28
…do ye have partners among those whom your right hands possess (i.e., slaves, captives) to share as equals in the wealth We have bestowed on you? Do ye fear them as ye fear each other?
Allah recognizes some human beings, namely the masters, as more blessed by Himself than the less favored slaves as part of His divine plan. He warns Muslims against sharing His gifts to them equally with their slaves. Those who would take slaves as equal, warns Allah, would deny Him:
Quran 16:71
Allah has bestowed His gifts of sustenance more freely on some of you than on others: those more favoured are not going to throw back their gifts to those whom their right hands possess, so as to be equal in that respect. Will they then deny the favours of Allah?
Allah does not only sanction the institution of slavery, He also gave divine blessing to masters (Muslim men only can own slaves) to have sex with the female slaves:
Quran 70:29–30
And those who guard their private parts, Except in the case of their wives or those whom their right hands possess—for these surely are not to be blamed
Quran 23:5–6
And who guard their private parts, except before their mates or those whom their right hands possess, for they surely are not blameable
Therefore, if there are women amongst the captives or slaves, Muslims are divinely sanctioned to have sex with them as they do with their wives. This verdict of Allah founded the institution of sex-slavery or slave-concubinage in Islam, which was widespread in the pre-colonial Muslim world and continued well into the mid-twentieth century. As far as legal marriage is concerned, there is a limitation of four wives for a man at one time [Quran 4:3], but no such limitation on the number of sex-slaves.
Allah also gave a divine sanction to Muslims for acquiring female slaves for sexual engagement by waging wars against the infidels:
Quran 33:50
O Prophet! surely We have made lawful to you your wives whom you have given their dowries, and those whom your right hand possesses out of those whom Allah has given to you as prisoners of war…
Muslims can engage in sex with the captured slave women even if they are married, but not with the married free Muslim women:
Quran 4:24
Also (prohibited are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess…
There are other verses in the Quran that talks approvingly of slaves and capturing them in wars. Thus, according to the divine commands of the Islamic God as enshrined in the holy Quran, Muslims are allowed to keep slaves. They can amass slaves by waging wars, have sex with the female slaves, and of course, use them as they wish. For Muslims, having sex with female slaves is as legal as having sex with their married wives. Slavery appears to be one of the most desired divine privileges in Islam, since Allah took the pain of reminding Muslims about this divine right time and again in so many verses.
http://www.islam-watch.org/
Abdullah ibn Salam says
Islam is the one and only TRUE religion of God! Do you think that when your body moves according to how the devil whistles – you are free?
Deep is the deception of unbelievers. In drugs and music they seek refuge from the Peace of Allah. This is how they lose their souls to the Devil!
Good for you, a drunk singing puppet of the Devil! Be proud in your depravity!!!
mortimer says
Dear Abdullah, What you call ‘the peace of Allah’ is the braindeath of Allah and the absence of culture of Allah. You are a parroting automaton of Allah who has lost any sense of self. You are a nothing of Allah, a valueless nobody of Allah. Your vain repetitions get you nothing from Allah. Your Allah is the hoax foisted on simple-minded people by the evil, vicious caliphs who thought nothing of murdering their families and children. They despised the people as they manipulated them into throwing their lives away so the caliphs could get what they wanted. The caliphs were ‘allah’.
Buraq says
@ Abdullah ibn Salam
OK, ‘slave of Allah’, because that’s what your name translated from Arabic to English means, if I am depraved and misguided, that’s my choice! You are a ‘slave’, and I am a free man. You should break these chains of Islam and breathe fresh, free air.
Abdullah ibn Salam says
Dear Mortimer & Buraq, your mind is deceiving you! What is in Qur’an and hasn’t been abrogated is the eternal wisdom of God! Allahu Akbar!
You do not know the perversion of Christianity, especially Catholicism. They are corrupted to the core and devil laughs at all those souls, who follow it. It you need Christianity, follow Mormonism, its truest form.
Instead of Qur’an, which is Word of Allah, you would rather trust Mr Spencer?
JessieJames says
Instead of Qur’an, which is Word of Allah, you would rather trust Mr Spencer?
————————————————————————————————-
I would rather trust the word of the one true God known as JESUS. And you would do well to read the Holy Bible instead of the book of lies which you have so foolishly intrusted your soul.
Abdullah ibn Salam says
@JessieJames, Jesus never said that HE was God. He was a Son of God, meaning Son of Mary. Mary is God the Father, you stupid kafirs!
But before Jesus could establish His kingdom on Earth, the kafirs had crucified Him. If you want Kingdom of God on Earth, I invite you to Islam 🙂
Buraq says
@ ‘slave of Allah’, Abdullah
You say that Al Qur’an contains the ‘eternal wisdom’ of Allah. Really? So, it’s eternal wisdom to describe a woman as being like a man’s ’tilth’ (field) and he can go upon her whenever he likes? It’s ‘eternal wisdom’ to describe people like me as kufr, and as the ‘vilest of creatures’ simply because I am not a Muslim?
You’ve got a strange notion of what amounts to ‘eternal wisdom’. In fact, you’re a wire-wigged, baggy trousered, red nosed clown!
Abdullah ibn Salam says
Buraq, you don’t know a thing about God!
When God created Adam, He gave him his wife and a lust for her. In her, he put lust for Adam.
We can have each other, when we want to, except during menstruation. This is why we can have more wives, so that we are always taken care of!
Muslims, we are the best! Allah is the best! Muhammad and Aisha are the best! We are Islam and the 99 names of Allah! We are the best!
Allahu akbar!
Abdullah ibn Salam says
You stupid unbelievers! Don’t you know that Aisha is Jesus? Don’t you know that Muhammad is Mary. Yes, Jesus was son of God, but it’s not how you picture it!
The Holy Trinity is Muhammad, Aisha and Jihad!
This is Father, Son and the Holy Spirit!
Holy Spirit is Jihad!
bonnie loranger says
Abdullah , your are a jerk. move on to another site. You will convince nobody on this side. We all know the truth about Evil Mohammed and this evil cult that is Islam.
Abdullah ibn Salam says
@Bonnie loranger, I guess I was trying to convince you. But now that you know the Truth and the Beauty of Islam, and have rejected it, you will be thrown into the lowest level of Hell!
Muhammad and Aisha – that was SECOND coming of Christ!
Now there is THIRD coming of Christ – the day of Judgment is near!
CogitoErgoSum says
Ban music? Anyone familiar with string theory? A cosmic symphony may be playing all around us….. if we only knew how to listen. Perhaps we all dance to the music of a Master Composer. There’s no way to prove such a theory…so far…but if true, the universe in which we live is far more majestic and elegant than anyone can dream….and we are the results of the most beautiful of vibrations.
For those who have the time and the inclination…and the curiosity:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/elegant-universe.html#elegant-universe-einstein
Abdullah ibn Salam says
I’m just messing with your heads.
A bunch of early April 1 jokes 😉
As-salam alaykum!
dumbledoresarmy says
If “Abdullah Ibn Salam” is a Muslim…nuff said. If it is a non-Muslim troll trying to yank chains for “fun”…then all I can say is that in a site like this, where people are discussing what is fundamentally the equivalent of the rise of the Third Reich, except that it is far more serious, namely, the petrodollar-powered resurgence of a monstrous Death Cult that has been mass-murdering humans on three continents for 1400 years, “jokes” and “trolling” of that sort are in very, very bad taste.
Abdullah ibn Salam says
I was just testing, how susceptible you were to Taqiyya 😉
You know, War is peace, Freedom is slavery, Ignorance is strength!
gravenimage says
Abdullah ibn Salam wrote:
Islam is the one and only TRUE religion of God! Do you think that when your body moves according to how the devil whistles – you are free?
Deep is the deception of unbelievers. In drugs and music they seek refuge from the Peace of Allah. This is how they lose their souls to the Devil!
…………………………………………
What crap. There is no peace in the violent creed of Islam. And Islam rejects the God given talent of making music. There is no acknowledgment of beauty in Islam at all. Everywhere, it attempts to destroy beauty, and enshrine violence and ugliness.
More:
Instead of Qur’an, which is Word of Allah, you would rather trust Mr Spencer?
…………………………………………
Actually, most of us can decide for ourselves. We know Islam by its diseased fruit—such as what is going on in Syria in this story. Robert Spencer provides excellent analysis, but most of us had already come to the conclusion that there was something very, very wrong with Islam before discovering Mr. Spencer’s fine work.
More:
If you want Kingdom of God on Earth, I invite you to Islam
…………………………………………
We all know that Muslims “invite” Infidels to Islam before they attack.
More:
We can have each other, when we want to, except during menstruation. This is why we can have more wives, so that we are always taken care of!
…………………………………………
What he means is that pious Muslims, between their four wives, sex slaves, and rape victims, always have plenty of sexual receptacles. This is the appalling Islamic view of male/female relations—what a hollow, loveless creed Islam is!
And who knows what his incoherent rantings about Christianity add up to—he s even less cogent than most Mohammedans. The only thing that is clear is that the Muslim claim to “revere” Jesus—really, the appalling figure of “Isa”—is not to be taken seriously.
More:
Muslims, we are the best! Allah is the best! Muhammad and Aisha are the best! We are Islam and the 99 names of Allah! We are the best!
Allahu akbar!
…………………………………………
Muslim supremacism in a nutshell—based on nothing but aggressive assertion…
Montedoro44 says
In any analysis of the differences between Islamic sharia and democracy, it ought to be pointed out at the top that the primary difference is that Islamic sharia is the law of God, and democracy is the law of Man. Everything else is a detail; that fact, which Muslims readily admit, is the pivot that provides a basis on which to counter all of the subterfuges & rebuttals, like how Islamic sharia changes its face here & there, or how in so many ways it resembles western law. In a public gathering, say, a MSA presentation, it is likely that very few infidels know this essential difference, and the Muslims in attendance do know it and don’t readily mention it.
Re Abdullah ibn Salam, poor taste maybe — chacun a son gout — but his/her spoof has a wry charm about it. Some name-calling commenters here might lighten up a bit. Abdullah’s humor is akin to the Mohammad cartoons, if not as immediately obvious. If Abdullah pushed your button, then you can glimpse how the Mocartoons pushed mobuttons.
Jan says
”Re Abdullah ibn Salam, poor taste maybe — chacun a son gout — but his/her spoof has a wry charm about it. Some name-calling commenters here might lighten up a bit. Abdullah’s humor is akin to the Mohammad cartoons, if not as immediately obvious. If Abdullah pushed your button, then you can glimpse how the Mocartoons pushed mobuttons”
Except none of the commenters here are calling for the **murder** of ‘abdullah’ the silly twat !
Muhammad Khan says
Yes, all of these verses talk about the slaves and about relationships with the female slaves. And its very justfull and we the Muslims believe in it very much. So thanks for posting it.
The only things I wish you had mentioned is the commands for the masters towards their slaves. Quran has commanded the masters behave with the slaves in a certain way, I wish you had mentioned that too.
Anyway, the more you write against Quran the more ppl will read it and the more they would appriciate it.
Muhammad Khan says
My freind a child is killed out of hunger in every two minutes in Africa and you are asking humanity to get engaged in the music? There are always different perpectives to see things. Please dont jump on the guns about Quran, before even having a look at it. I am sure if you can read and understand Physics you have enough common sence to understand QURAN. Read it its only good for you.
dumbledoresarmy says
ABove, a mohammedan takes it for granted that jihadwatch commenters can’t possibly have read the infernal Quran, that accursed book.
ROFLMAO.
An awful lot of commenters here *have* read the infernal Quran…and that’s why they’re here!
Me, I had read the horrid thing – one of the most totally bizarre, creepy, boring and worst-written screeds I have ever had the displeasure of reading – years before September 11. I pegged it right then and there for a dangerous cult text.
And if the mohammedan thinks that the average sensible, decent Westerner will rush to convert to Islam after reading the infernal Quran, it’s got another think coming.
*Here* is a much more typical response.
It’s from a posting here on 6 August 2009.
“Hello DDA, you asked me on another thread how I found my way here.
“Don’t laugh, but it was Anjem Choudary who pointed me here.
“I googled him after a particularly vile rant and it led me to Dhimmi Watch- hence here.
“I then went into Glasgow and bought myself a Koran to see [AND] read for myself, I must admit that I couldn’t make much sense of it ( at the time) and layed it down.
” I remember thinking to myself ” Did I buy the right thing? ” because what I had just finished reading was not a Holy Book but a gangsters murder manual.
” I was flabbergasted that every thing I had ever been taught since a child was a sin was condoned and applauded in this terrible book.
I put it in the bin the next morning. “